Olympian, Winter X Games Champ Comes From Behind To Win The Gold
LOS ANGELES – At 20 years old, Shaun White already has an Olympic gold medal and six Winter X Games gold medals around his neck – but before today ESPN X Games gold had eluded him. He finished a disappointing eighth place in last year’s Men’s Skateboard Vert competition, and this afternoon found himself out of medal contention heading into his final run on the Vert ramp at The Home Depot Center.
But one great run can change everything, and in front of X Games commentator Tony Hawk and a cheering crowd of thousands, White put down a run that knocked off then leader Pierre-Luc Gagnon and added yet another milestone to what has been a remarkable career thus far.
“I’m overwhelmed,” White said just afterwards, catching his breath. “I can’t even talk right now.”
White’s winning run included a 720°, a back side 540°, a McTwist, a stalefish frontside rodeo into a frontside rodeo, and overall was punctuated with the snowboard influenced, high amplitude style that has come to define his riding. “Pretty much my goal was to never do a straight air,” he explained. White hurled his board and helmet into the air after finishing strong, raising his arms in triumph.
“This means the world to me,” White said. “Pierre threw down the gauntlet for me, you know? I was just trying to stick my run...[i]t just came together. I couldn’t let myself fall.”
Afterwards, White joined X Games commentators Sal Masakela and Tony Hawk in the broadcast booth. “To finally see you make it, in this venue, was amazing,” Hawk told White.
Silver medalist Gagnon was gracious about having the gold snatched away by White. “We have different styles of skating – that’s what skating is all about. It’s about being original and being unique,” he said. “Getting bronze on the Mega Ramp and silver here definitely means a whole lot.”
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